Police reports: Interstate squabble leads to arrests close to Dotsero

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Editor's note: The following excerpts were taken from Eagle County law enforcement officers and police reports.

DOTSERO, Colorado - Deputies responded to a report of a couple fighting near a vehicle stopped on the shoulder of eastbound Interstate 70 near Dotsero on May 24.

A 25-year-old woman was seen throwing objects at a 31-year-old man and then getting into the vehicle, which continued on I-70.

Officers caught up with the suspect vehicle - a white pickup with a camper shell - and pulled it over after seeing the truck veer onto the left shoulder from the left lane. An officer told the couple about the report of their fight and asked what happened.

The man said he lost his job in Utah and they were on their way back to Denver. The woman was screaming at him, so he pulled over and asked her to get out. She wouldn't, so he pulled her out and she fell down and then started throwing things at him. He said "it probably looked bad" but he "loved her to death."

The woman identified herself with what turned out to be a fake name and initially denied anything happened. Then she said the man did throw her out.

Deputies saw several sores on the woman's face and arms that were consistent with drug users. They asked her if there were any drugs in the car, and she said no, if there were any they belonged to the man.

The man denied having any drugs and denied permission to search the vehicle. A drug dog alerted to the driver's door handle two separate times and officers were able to obtain a search warrant. They found a container with needles and multiple burned spoons, along with other containers of marijuana and marijuana pipes.

The man was arrested for domestic violence, harassment, possession of drug paraphernalia, driving with a revoked license and failing to drive in a designated lane. The woman was arrested for criminal impersonation, domestic violence and harassment.

WOLCOTT, Colorado - A Wolcott resident called deputies May 30 to report shots being fired from a neighboring house onto his property where he had horses.

Officers went to the house and contacted a group of 19-year-olds who said they were shooting at ground squirrels with a .22-caliber rifle off the back deck. The teen who lived there said he did it often and made sure the gun was always at a downward angle. He estimated about 100 rounds were fired.

A deputy told him he could not shoot rifles from his deck for a few reasons: He was not more than 100 yards from other occupied structures; the property was on a golf course and classified as a resort, and he was under the influence of alcohol.

The young man was cited for prohibited use of a weapon and underage possession and consumption of alcohol. The other teens were not cited since they were led to believe the activity was OK.

GYPSUM, Colorado - Deputies were called to a store in Gypsum on May 31 for a shoplifter that had been caught.

The 38-year-old woman admitted to trying to steal a shirt by stuffing it in her purse and stealing other items from the store in the past. The shirt was worth $10. She was cited for theft and banned from the store.

GYPSUM, Colorado - A Gypsum man called deputies on June 3 when he heard a loud banging sound from his neighbor's apartment on Jules Drive.

It was unusual because he usually hears people walking up the stairs after the door opens. When he didn't hear footsteps, he went next door to greet his neighbors and saw their door was kicked in.

The residents had slept through the noise until officers woke them. They had no idea who might be responsible. Nothing appeared to be stolen. The damage was estimated to cost $1,000.

• $400 was stolen from a purse left unattended at a concert venue in Bond on May 27.

• The lock and handle were pried off of a walk-in freezer at an Eagle-Vail golf club between May 29 and 30. No food was stolen, and the club manager suspected the burglar was looking for alcohol.

• Four iPods were stolen from the New America School in Gypsum on May 15. The iPods belong to Eagle Valley Schools.

• The back window of a van was smashed out while it was parked at an Eagle-Vail apartment complex June 5.

• A rock was thrown through a window of Battle Mountain High School in Edwards between June 5 and 6. The window is estimated to cost $1,000 to replace.

• Deputies photographed murals spray painted inside a wildlife tunnel near Battle Mountain High School and sent the photos to the school's teachers to see if they might identify the artist.